Chapter 1497 - 1069: Divine Oracle (2)
The Patriarch of the Hai Family, with a smile, bowed slightly, "Lord City Lord, you worry too much. Since he was chosen, Hai Xunche surely has profound blessings and can bear the cost of facing the gods. The Sea God has not summoned a divine messenger for many years; there must be something urgent this time, and we cannot afford to be late arriving at Xiyue City."
Anyway, he’s just a tool to receive rewards; as long as he can survive, convey the divine prophecy clearly, and bring back the Sea God’s rewards, who cares about his fate?
Turtle Essence looked at the impatient Hai Xunche, sighed, shook his head, and stepped forward to activate the Teleportation Array.
Initially, the undersea world’s clans had only three divine messengers, passed down through generations.
The purpose was to complement and assist each other in striving to convey the entire divine prophecy word for word to all Sea Demons.
But later, the clans without divine messenger descendants watched them bring back numerous divine artifacts, their teeth itching with envy! Driven by greedy desires, the Sea Demon Race erupted in its first internal war.
Since then, the Sea Demon Race was divided into north and south factions.
The Sea God, powerless to manage these disputes, had no choice but to allow the north and south factions to each build a divine temple. When the need arose to convey divine prophecy, each faction dispatched divine messengers to their temple to listen.
The initially generationally passed three divine messengers were unevenly distributed and clearly insufficient.
After dividing into north and south factions, they each selected three divine messengers, totaling six who listened to the divine prophecy simultaneously.
As time passed, the Sea God’s condition worsened; the generational divine messengers either died off or their descendants were excluded, leaving selection entirely in the hands of the powers that be.
Subsequently, the number of divine messengers grew, with major cities launching their own divine messengers.
Hai Xunche almost broke his neck to secure this lucrative position. For this, he didn’t hesitate to hire assassins to kill, causing accidents for other competitors, obstructing their advancement; he abandoned his parents, wife, and children, all to show loyalty, only to become an adopted child of the direct lineage after receiving the Sea God’s reward.
After paying so much, finally, the day came for the Sea God’s summons, his hands trembling slightly with excitement.
Accompanied by the Patriarch and City Lord, they were transmitted to the temple, where looking around, there were no less than a hundred divine messengers gathered. Hai Xunche was both excited and nervous, whispering, "As expected of divine beings, to be so generous! Our north faction alone has so many divine messengers, the south faction certainly has more; how many divine artifacts will be distributed this time?"
"You’re overthinking it," Turtle Essence said in a deep voice, "The Sea God is merciful; after the warning that too many divine messengers were unnecessary went ignored, he never awarded a divine artifact again, mostly distributing some Magical Treasures instead."
The Patriarch of the Hai Family added, "Even if they are Magical Treasures, they are treasured by the Sea God, not comparable to ordinary Magical Treasures. To face the Sea God personally, to hear the divine prophecy, to receive the Sea God’s reward is a tremendous blessing; we should not ask for more."
Turtle Essence glanced at him and said no more.
After waiting a while longer, the temple doors quietly opened, and the eager divine messengers rushed forward.
Seeing Hai Xunche about to sprint in as well, a perturbed Turtle Essence pulled him back, speaking gravely, "To present yourself to the Sea God, you must be devout; you cannot scramble and clamor, losing decorum. Be sure to memorize the divine prophecy precisely, whether Xiyue City hears it first relies on you."
"Rest assured, Lord City Lord!" Hai Xunche didn’t even bother with a formal gesture, sneered internally in the moment of freeing himself, thinking how everyone remains untroubled, but you, old fellow, fuss too much!
If I arrive late and miss the front row, wouldn’t I only get what’s left, taking a huge loss?
Over a hundred people jovially rushed into the temple, leaving behind the accompanying clan leaders and city lords, watching as the door slowly closed again.
Dragged back by the City Lord, Hai Xunche pushed forward zealously, relying on his thick turtle shell to squeeze into a middle position rather than too far back. Following an endless-looking passage downward, he ran for a long time before finally reaching a spacious hall.
"It’s said the temple hall is built hundreds of miles down in the sea, just to block the Sea God’s descending pressure, avoiding causing harm to the Sea Demons above."
"Whatever the harm, it’s merely losing a few decades of lifespan, is it worth it?"
"I also think the Sea God is overcautious, making a fuss."
"No matter the lifespan loss, the Sect Leader has already promised, as long as I bring back the divine prophecy and the Sea God’s reward, all Heavenly Materials and Earthly Treasures of the Sect are at my disposal. Apparently, there’s also a Longevity Pill available, which can immediately extend lifespan upon consumption!"
"No wonder it’s a Major Sect, having such Treasures. Unfortunately, for small families like ours, not to mention a Longevity Pill, even Heavenly Materials and Earthly Treasures are scarce indeed."
"Friend, don’t be modest; standing here, none are poverty-stricken."
"His condition is poor now, logically his Divine Power being weak should have less impact on us, so why is it more severe?"
"Hehe, is it considered internal conflict? Able to emit energy externally but unable to keep from releasing pressure on the divine messengers?"
......
The hall was bustling like a market, and no one noticed a faint shadow appearing on the white wall of the hall.
The Sea God’s Divine Soul split into six fragments; besides the Sea Moon and Sea Sun fragments radiating Divine Power outward, the other four rested in the Sea Moon Tomb, Sea Sun Tomb, and the two temples in the north and south.
However, the Power of Faith was dwindling, and the energy obtained from the annual worship at the Sea Moon Tomb and Sea Sun Tomb was weak. Now, the fragment in the Sea Moon Tomb has entered the Ink Jade Space, receiving far better nurturing than in the tomb.
Six fragments of the Divine Soul share prosperity and misfortune alike. The Sea God looked at the bustling hall, unable to help but sigh.
Every generation is worse than the last!
After this upheaval, it is uncertain how many sea demons will remain.
"Silence!" Seeing the "Enlightened Ones" excitedly chatting, when the Sea God spoke, uncontrollable pressure was released.
The hall immediately fell into silence, not out of reverence for the Sea God, but because the pressure was so strong. Breathing became difficult, let alone speaking.
"Hereby declaring the divine prophecy: The change of heaven and earth, the sun and moon will perish. When the time comes, there will be no distinction between day and night, Spiritual Energy will disappear, and barriers will open wide. My believers, chant my name, cultivate diligently and await good news in silence, I shall protect you."
He had intended to say more, but sensed that half of the people lacked sufficient blessings, and the brief divine prophecy had already burned their lifespans, turning their hair white. To avoid the Enlightened Ones dying in the hall from a lack of lifespan, the Sea God could only sigh as the Divine Soul returned to the depths, waiting for the young friend to arrive.
The God came and went quickly; Hai Xunche endured the severe burning pain of his lifespan, still waiting for his reward, but the Sea God remained silent!
"Is that it? What about the God’s reward?"
"Didn’t they say that after hearing the divine prophecy, there would be rewards?"
"The sun and moon are the incarnations of the Sea God, if the sun and moon perish, does that mean the Sea God will fall?"
"But they can’t just ignore the Enlightened Ones! I went through so much effort to earn this position, how can I return empty-handed?"
"Pah! Stupid Sea God, just a liar! Return my lifespan! I-I have only a few days left to live, and there’s not a shred of reward, my sect won’t compensate me!"
"Spiritual Energy is going to disappear, the barriers will disappear too, the Sea God doesn’t care about us anymore..."
......
The hall was filled with wails; after a long time, the bell rang, signaling that the Enlightened Ones should leave the temple, but no one moved. Many sea demons couldn’t bear the blow and wished they could turn the hall upside down to search for the Sea God’s treasures.
However, the empty hall had nothing.
Outside, hundreds of sea demons stretched their necks, peering into the temple door. The door had been open for so long, why hadn’t a single sea demon come out?
Could it be, that the Enlightened Ones chosen amid interest disputes lacked blessings, and they died inside after gazing upon the Divine Beings?
Only after the bell had stopped for a while, did a staggering figure finally emerge slowly.
"They’re here! Finally out!"
"Why is it taking so long this time, the Sea God seems to have spent more time bestowing the prophecy than ever before."
"This time the prophecy must be extremely important!"
"Hey! Hurry up, the entire city is waiting to hear the prophecy!"
"What treasure did the Sea God bestow, quickly bring it out for us to see and share the blessings..."
......
In contrast to the noisy sea demons outside, the Enlightened Ones emerging slowly were all lifeless.
Turtle Essence’s eyes immediately saw Hai Xunche, his pupils shrank, "Wha-What happened?"
Moments ago, the young man was full of vigor, and now coming out of the temple, he was aged! Snow-white hair, face full of wrinkles, staggering steps, were it not for that priceless Magical Robe exclusive to the Enlightened Ones listening to the prophecy, he wouldn’t dare recognize him!
The Patriarch of the Hai Family was also startled, but he had more important matters, grabbing Hai Xunche he asked, "What was the prophecy? What treasure did the Sea God reward, quickly bring it out!"